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Every day, it seems, brings a fresh reason for Mayor Martin Chavez and the City Council to fight.

Late last week, that reason was large pieces of adhesive vinyl applied to city vehicles.

The mayor wants every vehicle added to the city fleet decorated in that fashion, something along the lines of a race car, but instead of product placement it would brand a particular city department.

The vinyl wraps, which are still being designed, vary in size but several could be pieced together to cover the entire side of a vehicle.

Each city department would have its own wrap.

"It's a morale booster and has productivity as a payoff," said Bruce Perlman, the city's chief administrative officer. "The mayor's wrap initiative has both practical effects . . . as well as aesthetic effects."

The decision has raised the ire of City Councilors Debbie O'Malley and Michael Cadigan, who say it's too expensive and frivolous.

"I just think as a taxpayer, it doesn't really do me any good," Cadigan said.

Wraps are usually used for advertising purposes, he said, but people "have to buy those services (advertised on the city vehicles) whether they like it or not."

The two councilors have asked the city's Internal Audit and Investigations Department to look into the matter.

How much it costs isn't settled. The councilors pointed to a price list from Subia, the Albuquerque firm that does the design and installation, and concluded that a single wrap could cost between $2,000 and $3,800.

That, Cadigan said, runs up against a city rule that any contract more than $50,000 must be approved by the council.

The city regularly buys cars and trucks to replace ones in its 7,000-vehicle fleet. It was unclear how many vehicles are replaced every year, but if it were only 100 per year, the cost would add up.

"You do the math," Cadigan said. "That's more than 50,000 bucks."

But Perlman said the city isn't interested in wrapping the whole vehicle - just a little on the sides. It will cost between $500 and $700 per vehicle, he said.

The vinyl will be purchased piece by piece as new cars arrive, he said, and therefore doesn't exceed the $50,000 figure.

"This is an initiative that might take five to 10 years to complete," Perlman said.